Summer is hot in Japan and you know what else is hot in Japan? Love.
Summer is also the season for love in Japan as we celebrate the Tanabata (七夕) or also known as the Festival of the Star Lovers. The festival is celebrated from July 4th till August 31st.
For individuals who are looking for love, a visit to the shrine during the summer season is one way to improve their chances of finding their true love. Therefore, love pilgrimage to the Kifune Shrine in Kyoto and the Izumo-Taisha in Shimane is important, if not, necessary for individuals who are looking for their true love. These shrines are known as some of the most ancient and important Shinto shrines in Japan and has been shrines for those who seek love.
If you can't make your way to the above-mentioned shrines, guess what? We have another relatively unknown love shrine in the well-known tourist town of Kawagoe. It is the Hikawa Shrine.
With a history of 1,500 years, this shrine is known as a shrine dedicated to love and improving relationships between couples, friends, co-workers and people in general. This shrine worships the God of Marriage and it is one of the shrines known for weddings other than the famous Meiji Jingu. There is a good chance that you can witness a wedding procession surrounded by greenery and not crowd of tourists as in Meiji Jingu.
In the past, there was a belief that if you take home a stone from this shrine and pray to it, it will improve your relationship with your partner. So there was one period when every morning, a shrine maiden will pick 20 stones a day to be blessed by the shrine's priest and these stones will be handed to the determined individuals who got up early to join the line outside the shrine's gate for the stones.
Well, that was in the past. Today, the shrine does not distribute the blessed stones anymore and no, you are not allowed to pick up any stones from the ground of the shrine. Oh no! Then, how can we enhance our love lives now, you might ask.
So, instead of picking up stones, Hikawa Shrine has prepared a special way for lovers and individuals who are looking for love to make their dreams come true. Hikawa Shrine has prepared two tunnels of wind-chime which is named as the 'tunnel of love'. The preparation of these tunnels is also the shrine's way of celebrating the Tanabata festival.
The first tunnel which is located in front of the shrine and is filled with 888 small wooden plagues written by the shrine's worshippers hanging from the wind-chimes.
And the other love tunnel which is located inside the shrine has wooden plaques where you can write your own prayers or wishes.
At night, the shrine's river will light up and projected as the Milky Way.
Every month on 8th and 24th at 8.08am, Hikawa Shrine conducts its own special processions. These processions are, none other than to improve your love life and enhance your relationship.
The shrine also has a reservation-only cafe, the Musubi cafe, that serves high dining 'cafe' food. For breakfast, the limit is to 20 diners. If you have a group of more than 4 people, you will have to call and make a reservation. The website is here in Japanese.
Within the shrine grounds, you will be surrounded by numerous trees over 500 years old and it is a place where even the local people come to relax and escape the heat in the city.
The nearest train station to the old town in Kawagoe is Hon-Kawagoe station (accessible on Seibu Line), but there are two other railway stations, Kawagoe Station (accessible on JR and Tobu Line) and Kawagoe-shi Station (accessible on Tobu-Tojo Line). Yes, to get to Kawagoe, you can take 3 different railway companies, the Tobu-Tojo Line, the Seibu-Shinjuku Line and the JR Line.
The old town of Kawagoe is accessible with a 10-15mins walk from Hon-Kawagoe station, but from the two other railway stations, the walk is an extra of 10mins walk.
If you want to stop at the Hon-Kawagoe station, then you can use Seibu Shinjuku trains. Each journey takes about 50-60mins and the train fare is 500yen per way.
If you don't mind the extra 10mins walk and stop at Kawagoe station, then, the Tobu-Tojo Line is the fastest and with the most frequent train service to get to Kawagoe. It takes only 30mins by express train from Ikebukuro station with no train change and the train fare is 470yen per way.
From Shibuya or Shinjuku or Ikebukuro station, you can also take the direct rapid trains via Omiya on the JR Saikyo/Kawagoe Line. The whole journey takes 55mins and it is 760yen per way (yes, you can use your Japan Rail Pass for this trip).
When you reach Kawagoe or Hon-Kawagoe station, the city can be leisurely enjoyed on foot, by bicycle or by buses. There are two bus companies that operate almost similar routes that connects all the main attractions of the city. Both bus companies sell one-day pass which offers you an unlimited ride around the city. All busses are equipped with screen with English translation.
Do you like the sound of wind-chime?
Summer is also the season for love in Japan as we celebrate the Tanabata (七夕) or also known as the Festival of the Star Lovers. The festival is celebrated from July 4th till August 31st.
For individuals who are looking for love, a visit to the shrine during the summer season is one way to improve their chances of finding their true love. Therefore, love pilgrimage to the Kifune Shrine in Kyoto and the Izumo-Taisha in Shimane is important, if not, necessary for individuals who are looking for their true love. These shrines are known as some of the most ancient and important Shinto shrines in Japan and has been shrines for those who seek love.
If you can't make your way to the above-mentioned shrines, guess what? We have another relatively unknown love shrine in the well-known tourist town of Kawagoe. It is the Hikawa Shrine.
With a history of 1,500 years, this shrine is known as a shrine dedicated to love and improving relationships between couples, friends, co-workers and people in general. This shrine worships the God of Marriage and it is one of the shrines known for weddings other than the famous Meiji Jingu. There is a good chance that you can witness a wedding procession surrounded by greenery and not crowd of tourists as in Meiji Jingu.
In the past, there was a belief that if you take home a stone from this shrine and pray to it, it will improve your relationship with your partner. So there was one period when every morning, a shrine maiden will pick 20 stones a day to be blessed by the shrine's priest and these stones will be handed to the determined individuals who got up early to join the line outside the shrine's gate for the stones.
Well, that was in the past. Today, the shrine does not distribute the blessed stones anymore and no, you are not allowed to pick up any stones from the ground of the shrine. Oh no! Then, how can we enhance our love lives now, you might ask.
So, instead of picking up stones, Hikawa Shrine has prepared a special way for lovers and individuals who are looking for love to make their dreams come true. Hikawa Shrine has prepared two tunnels of wind-chime which is named as the 'tunnel of love'. The preparation of these tunnels is also the shrine's way of celebrating the Tanabata festival.
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| Wind-chime temple |
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| Super hot day in Kawagoe but the sound of the wind-chime cools me off |
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| It's magical how the sound of wind-chimes can be soothing |
And the other love tunnel which is located inside the shrine has wooden plaques where you can write your own prayers or wishes.
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| The entrance to the wind-chime tunnel |
At night, the shrine's river will light up and projected as the Milky Way.
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| Part of the Milky Way |
The shrine also has a reservation-only cafe, the Musubi cafe, that serves high dining 'cafe' food. For breakfast, the limit is to 20 diners. If you have a group of more than 4 people, you will have to call and make a reservation. The website is here in Japanese.
Within the shrine grounds, you will be surrounded by numerous trees over 500 years old and it is a place where even the local people come to relax and escape the heat in the city.
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| These lovely ladies allowed me to take their photos ^^ and I really love their yukata! |
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| Who can guess that the wind-chime can be this romantic? Looks like I must buy some wind-chime as decoration at home |
I must say that one of the most pleasant shrines I have been to and a great nature escape to be in especially if you are in Kawagoe.
The nearest train station to the old town in Kawagoe is Hon-Kawagoe station (accessible on Seibu Line), but there are two other railway stations, Kawagoe Station (accessible on JR and Tobu Line) and Kawagoe-shi Station (accessible on Tobu-Tojo Line). Yes, to get to Kawagoe, you can take 3 different railway companies, the Tobu-Tojo Line, the Seibu-Shinjuku Line and the JR Line.
The old town of Kawagoe is accessible with a 10-15mins walk from Hon-Kawagoe station, but from the two other railway stations, the walk is an extra of 10mins walk.
If you want to stop at the Hon-Kawagoe station, then you can use Seibu Shinjuku trains. Each journey takes about 50-60mins and the train fare is 500yen per way.
If you don't mind the extra 10mins walk and stop at Kawagoe station, then, the Tobu-Tojo Line is the fastest and with the most frequent train service to get to Kawagoe. It takes only 30mins by express train from Ikebukuro station with no train change and the train fare is 470yen per way.
From Shibuya or Shinjuku or Ikebukuro station, you can also take the direct rapid trains via Omiya on the JR Saikyo/Kawagoe Line. The whole journey takes 55mins and it is 760yen per way (yes, you can use your Japan Rail Pass for this trip).
When you reach Kawagoe or Hon-Kawagoe station, the city can be leisurely enjoyed on foot, by bicycle or by buses. There are two bus companies that operate almost similar routes that connects all the main attractions of the city. Both bus companies sell one-day pass which offers you an unlimited ride around the city. All busses are equipped with screen with English translation.
Do you like the sound of wind-chime?
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